Oh, Hello Brainrot

while i’m on the topic, it is very hilarious and also very insightful that mxtx actually plainly tells us how anyone else except wei wuxian would have fared without their golden cores/spiritual powers by putting thousand-plus cultivators in exactly that situation during the second siege. the way they all absolutely lose their shit, fumble around, lose coherence of thought, see-saw between decisions and become, essentially, helpless and useless is eye-opening. hell, jiang cheng ends up so affected that jin ling is able to manhandle him into the cave. the cultivators from the biggest clans aren’t able to come up with anything to save their asses and it takes shizui to point out the array for them to even consider it as an option. if wei wuxian, lan wangji and the juniors weren’t there, sooooo many disciples would have lost their lives–simply because of how incompetent they collectively became once they lost their spiritual powers. if they made a coordinated effort, they could have still held the corpses off, but it’s just that... they weren’t able to, mentally, get past their sudden lack of powers. they were disoriented.

now, i’m not saying that this isn’t a normal reaction to have. it’s totally understandable how these people were huge messes, especially in such a high stakes situation. it is just that it puts into perspective how AWESOME wei wuxian is to have had his golden core cut out of him, voluntarily, then beaten within a micrometre of his life, then thrown straight into the hell on earth aka the burial mounds and then instead of succumbing instantly, he instead overcame these impossible circumstances and somehow, survived and found alternative powers to keep him going. that is nothing short of mind-boggling, awe-inspiring, jaw-dropping. not one person in that siege-laying populace would be able to accomplish that and it held some of the finest cultivators their world has to offer. because no one, other than wei wuxian, had the internal capabilities to build their strengths up from a source that wasn’t their spiritual powers. without their golden cores, they would be toast faster than a human within one kilometre of the sun’s radius. and i love love love how mxtx hits us with this fact in our faces in exactly the scenes that are all about undoing the falsehoods and allegations that wei wuxian, until then, had been levied with in the larger cultivation world’s perspective.

🌿🌳🐰💞🐰🌳🌿

3am time to post mxtx mains on a hot ones interview:

hua cheng: like a rock. no reaction. never touches the milk.

xie lian: totally unfazed, but commenting on the ones that start making his lips burn like oh! so interesting

shen qingqiu: dying. gets through maybe 2 levels before showing discomfort. trying so hard to play it cool every time he has to grab for the milk/bread

luo binghe: not particularly bothered. very critical of the flavor/spice ratio in some of the sauces

lan wangji: very stoic. however he is also dying. bright red immediately. you can see the steam coming out of his ears by the third level

wei wuxian: terrifies the interviewer by demanding the bottles and adding more hot sauce to every wing. hits the last two-three levels and goes, "oh! finally these are getting good!" does shots of the last couple sauces off a spoon.

disclaimer it has been an age since i watched any hot ones vids x,D

@here4hualian kissmas day 5: kissing the cursed shackles

Xie Lian is bathing himself in the river when he notices the little ghost fire.

He calls out to it. "Hello? Do you need anything?"

Xie Lian doesn't feel particularly concerned about his modesty. Maybe it's the fact that the ghost fire doesn't have visible eyes to watch him with, even if it is hovering rather intently.

"Are you alright?" Xie Lian tries.

The ghost fire finally responds. "I'm fine. Dianxia doesn't need to worry about me."

Xie Lian is too tired to deal with how being recognized makes him feel. "Did you want to use the river? I don't mind sharing."

Slowly, the ghost fire drifts over, although it makes to movements towards the water. It just hovers next to Xie Lian, giving off a faint blue glow.

Subconsciously, Xie Lian scratches at his cursed shackle. It's been hurting all day. Ah, that's probably how the ghost fire recognized him. Word of his banishment and the punishment he received has spread quickly through the mortal realm.

"Does it hurt?" the ghost fire asks, and Xie Lian startles.

"Ah, it's nothing, really."

The ghost sinks lower towards the water, and Xie Lian is reminded of the way a human might pout. Perhaps it was looking to emphasize? Who better could understand pain than someone who has experienced death?

"I tried to use my spiritual powers today," Xie Lian tells it. "This thing has been squeezing at me ever since. It's only a little painful, don't worry. I've felt way worse."

"Is there anything this one can do to help?"

"Unless you have some spiritual energy to lend me." Xie Lian means it as a joke.

The ghost fire takes it seriously.

It floats upwards, flying over to Xie Lian's neck. The sensation of cold flames on his bare skin tickles, and chills rise down Xie Lian's spine.

And then, there's a tendril of energy flowing into him. It's small, barely there at all, but to Xie Lian, who hasn't had anything like it in so long, it may as well be an ocean of power.

It feels almost like a kiss, the way the ghost fire is transferring it.

After a moments, Xie Lian pulls away. His cheeks are slightly flushed. "You'll burn yourself out if you give me too much, silly thing. You really didn't need to do that."

"But I wanted to. Does it still hurt?"

Xie Lian pauses. Because... "No. It doesn't. I... thank you."

This is so sweet and mischievous. Like yes, canon wangxian totally would

wwx: oh, i'm just a frail maiden kidnapped by-

kidnapper: you're a man

yllz, very darkly, very powerful: say one more thing and i'm going to make you eat your own guts

kidnapper, scared: ...yes, sir

wwx: oh, i'm just a frail maiden kidnapped by evil men, how i wish i could be saved by a beautiful strong gentleman,!

wwx: *open one eye waiting*

lwj: *arriving in his full lan glory while his husband claps excitedly*

hating/criticising jiang cheng for his canonical shitty behaviour is not “bashing” like girl, he wasn’t written in a way to be likeable as a person and anyone bringing that up or expressing their dislike for him doesn’t make them an unreasonable cynic incapable of seeing his “goodness” like pls let’s have some sense here; calling jin guangshan a predatory sleazebag is not “bashing” because that’s literally his canonical reading, just the way calling jiang cheng an asshole manchild is literally his characterisation in the book. bashing is what you’d call the bad faith call-outs towards characters like wei wuxian where the hate is moreso a result of intense personal bias than actual source material backing. bashing is where you make an unnecessary mockery out of characters who don’t seem to deserve it. but rightfully disliking jiang cheng & making a post about it is not bashing and people need to stop thinking that being unsympathetic towards an antagonistic figure needs a thesis to justify the dislike, otherwise it’s illogical nonsense––because the thesis already exists and it’s called mdzs.

-Xie Lian looks so good in this- 🦋🌼

Wei Wuxian: Lan Zhan! Our son is giving me /such/ an attitude right now!

Lan Wangji: *comes into the tea room to see WWX and LSZ at the table* Hm? 😐

Lan Sizhui: 0.0 *big eyes and pouting because he’s literally not doing anything wrong* ??? 🥺

Lan Wangji: *turns to WWX* Hm? 🤔

Wei Wuxian: *picks up an annoyed looking rabbit from the floor* Look at this little monster, he’s thumping his legs at me because I won’t give him my food! This is human food! It’s cooked!

Lan Sizhui: *giggling* 🤭

Lan Wangji: *soft eyes of love and affectionate blinks* Mm. 🥰 Entitled.

Bunny: *angry thump at WWX as soon as he’s set down* 😡🐰

winning card

When someone brings out the novel artwork as 'proof' WWXs og body didn't have scars all over his back from YZYs canonical abuse... You know you're dealing with an idiot.

Yes, the art is pretty and a nice addition. But it's not canon and it hardly depicts it either... We have artwork in the novel that shows WWX in red and black during his youth when he would have been wearing Jiang clan purple. He only starts wearing black post burial mounds escape. So that's incorrect...

We have novel art depicting WWX with glowing red eyes... Also not canonically true either. Nor are his tits ever particularly out, but most give his YLLZ era a plunge neckline so low you might be able to see the hint of his garden path if you look close enough!

If you're using mostly fan generated artwork - who have been clearly influenced by the CQL and donghua or their own personal headcanons and preferences - you're a moron and wasting my time.

“Uh, yeah,” Wei Wuxian said. He felt his back, which was LINED WITH OLD AND NEW WELTS. He couldn’t help but ask the question he’d been dwelling on. “Really, this must be the greatest injustice in all of history. Why am I always the only one getting hit whenever something happens?”

7S translation

Wei WuXian, “Uh-huh, that’s right.” He felt his back, COVERED IN SCARS BOTH OLD AND NEW, and still couldn’t hold back the question he’d be thinking about, “How awfully unfair. Why is it that I’m the only one who gets beaten up, whenever something happens?”

ExR translation

YZY whipped and abused WWX whenever she was in residence at Lotus Pier. Considering she was apparently barely there and the detailed description of new and old scars (wounds/welts*/injuries - whatever you want to fucking call it!! It's all the same!!!) we see in the extras, she must have harmed him any chance she got while she was back. We see her lashing him (and him alone!) for the most tenuous of "reasons"... The fact it states he was covered in scars both new and old shows historical abuse spanning some time - most likely since he arrived at LP at the age of nine!!!

So don't go pulling that bullshit on me when we're talking about canon FACTS. Especially when people cherry pick the text to conveniently show what they want and omit the stuff that shows they're talking from their ass.

*An English lesson for those struggling with 7S translation choice for the scars on WWXs back...

The term "welts" doesn't JUST mean a swollen bruise like mark on the skin or an itchy raised bump. It's a technical term used for injuries and scars left behind from being whipped or beaten hard and heavily with something. While I'm not a fan of their word choices, this is technically correct in the sense the marks are classified as welts as defined above.